WFP delivers food aid to Sudan as famine looms
For the first time in months, The World Food Programme has negotiated the delivery of the first two convoys of food aid into war-torn Sudan, reports Asharq Al-Awsat plus agencies.
A civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Parliamentary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) broke out on the 15th of April 2023, sparking widespread hunger within the country.
Sudan is now facing the world’s largest hunger crisis, with more than 18 million civilians facing acute hunger and a further 8 million people being displaced.
“I fear that we will see unprecedented levels of starvation and malnutrition sweep across Sudan this lean season” World Food Programme (WFP) Sudan country director, Eddie Rowe, said in a statement on April 5th.
The army said it would allow deliveries by air in early March.
READ: Sudan: Army makes major advances amid impending famine
One convoy was able to arrive via the Adre border crossing with Chad into West and central Darfur carrying 1,300 tons of supplies. Both areas are struggling with emergency levels of hunger after being overrun by the RSF.
The second convoy arrived through the Tina border crossing into North Darfur, the only one of Darfur’s five states that has not fallen under RSF control. Together, both convoys contained food for 250,000 people.
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West Darfur and Khartoum have seen the fiercest attacks, according to the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS Net), both places are facing catastrophic levels of hunger, the term used on the household level for famine conditions, as well as many other areas of Darfur that house millions of displaced people.
The previous cereal harvest was estimated up to 80% below average in greater Darfur regions, where widespread insecurity prevented farmers from accessing their fields, causing a total failure of the cropping season.
Many in Darfur, particularly in displacement camps, say they have not received any aid since before the war. The UN’s aid response for Sudan is only 5% funded.
Asharq Al-Awsat/ Agencies.
